On September 3rd at the Knitting Factory in Brooklyn, I was presented with a concert any hip-hop aficionado would love to see. The lineup consisted of Isaac Sawyer, 2 Hungry Bros., Breeze Brewin (from the Juggernaut collective) and the headliner, Homeboy Sandman. I arrived right as 2 Hungry Bros were both behind the turntables and spitting rhymes, the greatest way hip-hop performers could get a crowd nice and rowdy. They were spinning tunes from the original vinyl that hip-hop samples derived from—school was in session.
When the time came, Isaac Sawyer stepped up to the mic with his own laptop and beat set ready for launch. Off the bat, he was spitting incredible rhyme schemes and then suddenly stop his track to engage in an a cappella freestyle. Besides his incredible lyricism, he was hopping on and off the stage in acrobatic movements getting the crowd involved with every step he took. He took pride in his interesting beat accompaniment and even introspectively rapped about how weird and off the beaten track he was. It was a spectacle to say the least.
Between each set, 2 Hungry Bros would hop back behind the turntables to play incredible records that touched the crowd's soul. You know it's a good DJ when you can look around and the crowd is swaying in both amazement and hypnotism to the beautiful records they would spin from turntable to turntable.
Next came Breeze Brewin, a New York hometown favorite. He started off the set by pulling up a stool and claiming he had pulled his back the day before working out; he must have been getting old. He has been in the New York hip-hop scene for twenty plus years! Although he was laced with a back brace and was on some pain killers, he still had an incredible set, not even utilizing the stool once. After about ten minutes into his set he pointed toward his twenty-two-year-old son on the side of the stage, who was there to see his father perform. After a quick but ruthless set, he decided to retire backstage to rest up after rocking the audience so hard.
2 Bros got back up on stage and the technical workers for the Knitting Factory started putting water bottles on water bottles on the stage. It was finally time to witness Homeboy Sandman. Apparently, the last time Homeboy played a show in New York was during Valentine's day last year with the acclaimed Aesop Rock, so this was a rare occurrence. Finally after much anticipation, Homeboy Sandman hit the stage in a fury.
He prefaced his set by saying that he wouldn't stop until three or four a.m. with a set list of over four-hundred and seventy songs. Nevertheless, I was impressed. From the start, he started rapping crowd favorites with his sidekick and DJ, Sosa. After at least three songs, he engaged in an a cappella freestyle similar to that of Isaac Sawyer.
I had to leave after two hours into the set, but I was still satisfied. This was a banger of a show, and I would recommend checking out these performers—it's so important to support local talent.
